Happily Ever After is Just a Phase
by Threaded Needles
Summary: High School AU. Tim and Cassie's relationship evolving throughout the years. Wonderbird.


LIt's ninth grade when she asks him out. It's her, not him, no matter how he tells the story over dinner to all their friends years later.

It's Spirit Week and her Mom is pushing her to go to Homecoming to enjoy the entire High School Experience ("You'll look ravishing in that old purple dress Artemis gave you"), and even though Cissie and a couple of other girls invite her into their group to go, but this is High School, and that's fucking lame.

She figures if she can't get the date she wants she'll just stay home and cry through a bucket of Moose Tracks while watching The Notebook and feel sorry for herself until her Mom pushes her out the door anyways in heels and that stupid purple dress Artemis gave her.

So, she asks Tim Drake.

Now, don't get her wrong, she knows Tim Drake is more than just a little out of her league, but he's cute. Cut-close dark hair, blue eyes, and he's built nice, not too thin, not too thick.

Her second choice was lightyears out of her fingertips, being a Junior, so she sticks with asking Tim.

Much to her everlasting surprise, he says yes, and asks what color her dress is so he can buy a matching corsage and what her address is so he can pick her up. Basically, he's like a too-good-to-be-true dream and she's waiting to wake up and be back to trying to suck in the courage ask him.

* * *

The dress is ugly. It has a freaking bow on the shoulder and she thinks for a half a second about ripping it off before doing so.

It looks a lot better afterwards.

Tim arrives at six as he promised, and her mother gushes about their cuteness and takes a zillion pictures and Cassie thinks she would've brought out her baby book if they didn't have to leave.

He has a butler. And a limo.

She thinks she's in love with him, by that alone.

They're dropped off at the school just as the line is starting to thicken. Tim manages to push them up to the front though, dropping off the five dollars for each of them before they're allowed in the barely lit gymnasium, silver balloons and decorations.

* * *

They spend more time together after the dance. Tim isn't naturally romantic, and he probably would've kept his mouth clamped shut during the entire picnic under an apple tree they have (arranged by Alfred, she's later informed), but once she prods enough to get him to start talking, he doesn't stop.

Everything, and anything. His thoughts on global warming and his brother Jason (apparently they don't get along that great).

And she thinks everything is perfect and they're gonna kiss and live happily ever after when Jason comes out and dumps an icebox full of cold water over them.

He's right. Jason is a prick.

* * *

They keep in touch during the summer, but see each other less frequently because Tim is taking summer classes to further education for business (he'll one day be CEO of Wayne Co. and the paycheck is fantastic), and she goes to Greece with her Mom on an archeological dig, and they skype once a week, making kiss faces at each other over the cam before collapsing in giggles and talking about their week.

And it goes on until the next year of school starts.

Tenth grade is a lot smoother. They're less awkward, no more sweaty hands or odd brushes of lips with mouthfuls of hair.

He's a little more romantic and on her birthday, in February, he sets up a candlelight dinner in his family's garden, and Jason must have lost a bet because he's bringing out dishes of food while wearing a suit.

Afterwards they sneak off to his room while Jason is supposed to be getting pie.

It's okay sex. Not really the mind blowing stuff Kara Kent gushes about to her when she has her over to talk. She barely remembers the details, anyways.

Other than the okay-losing-virginity, tenth grade is pretty low-key. So is the summer, as far as summers go. It's hot and sticky, and she mostly lays on the couch texting Tim and occasionally going over to his house because it has a pool.

Unfortunately, the same summer, Jason gets married to his long term girlfriend, and Cassie's forced to sit through a wedding and reception stewing in a tight dress with the bees buzzing in the garden outside.

To be honest, when it's over she doesn't care if she looks like the melting witch in the pictures, she just wants to go.

By the time school hits around she's just glad to have something to do again, even if it's so busy that her and Tim barely get texts in, let alone sex and dates.

After national exams, Tim has a party. He has people from all grades, and rather than grinding against Tim likes she wants to be, she's stuck on the couch next to a guy she doesn't know and Jason's wife. It only sticks out in her mind because someone dares Tim to kiss a guy.

He does it.

* * *

A few weeks later she goes to his house for a date, however instead ends up in the big club chair he has in his room while he's spread out on his bed, just talking.

She remembers the entire conversation.

"It's almost the end of the year."

"Yeah."

"Any big plans?"

"Jay and Vi are going to the Bahamas so we're sticking to the manor this summer."

Maybe it's the mention of the newlyweds, but the thought just pops into her head. "Let's get married."

"What?"

"Married. After school. We've been together almost three years, and if we're still together by the time school ends it'll have been four years. People get married after knowing each other for months."

He frowns. That's another thing she remembers. "Really?"

She kisses him as her answer.

* * *

11th grade ended without anything big and exciting happening, as she predicted. Her Mom tries to take her on another archeological dig- this time in India, wow- but she decides against it and stays at the Wayne Manor with Tim and his pissant younger brother, Damian.

Between the sex and the early morning pancakes with her arms wrapped around his waist and she knows this is what it's going to be like when they're married, Tim buys her an engagement ring. White gold and pretty blue sapphires and it's perfect.

She wears it with every outfit, and when her mom catches her with it during dinner the night she returned, discussing about how she'll be gone the entire year on another dig, and she lies easy saying it's just some dumb class ring. She starts wearing it on a chain around her neck instead.

* * *

The next year is a lot like the last, except her and Tim take the same elective and they end up raising this fake electronic baby girl with him in a Child Development class they take one semester.

Other than the barely-getting-to-sleep with the stupid screaming baby, the year is over and she's looking forward to a nice relaxing summer and marrying Tim before college classes started in the Fall (though Tim would be starting to work at his father's company).

In July they got married. She tried inviting to her mom to the wedding but the first time she called her, her mom yelled at her about how this is the stupidest thing she's done in forever, and high school sweetheart marriages never last.

And she hangs up, throwing her phone and doesn't speak to her Mom for years. She was never able to understand why her Mom couldn't see how in love she was with Tim.

They were meant to be, not like her parents, obviously.

The first few months are absolute bliss. They got along, split the housework and bathroom time in the morning.

When she starts taking up classes though, things start to get a bit edgy. Tim seems to be taking longer and longer in the shower and to shave in the morning and locks her out and she bangs on the door, waiting for him to open it, screaming that he's going to make her late until he yells back that she should've gotten up sooner.

Sometimes she'll come home exhausted and Tim will just be leafing through a book, shoes off and looking like the comfiest man in the world. Instead of having helped her out by doing the laundry for the day, he just let's the dirty clothes pile up ("It's not my job- you said you'd do them!").

Angry sex ensues several times where they're just pushing back onto the nearest piece of furniture and he's spreading her legs and sometimes she'll find bruises, that's the only time they'll feel close.

And that keeps up until she can't stop throwing up and crying at Tim about she hates him but wants to love him.

When they go to the doctor to find out the problem, she smiles and tells her the blood test came back- and she's pregnant.

She bursts into tears.

* * *

One of the conversations that followed the announcement of the pregnancy was one of her least favorites to remember.

She was laying on the couch, swollen and miserable, watching TV when Tim had come home. He loosened his tie, glancing at the show she was watching before flopping in the chair.

"So, I was thinking-"

"Don't hurt yourself," She said bitterly, turning the volume down.

Tim frowned, but took a deep breath so they didn't launch into a fight. "About the baby. If they see us fighting all the time, what kind of example are we setting?"

"So we won't fight."

"Is that even possible?"

Reflecting back it probably wasn't a great idea to pick fighting words to reply with. "Okay, fine, what do you want to do?"

He cleared his throat. "I was thinking, uhm, a divorice. Look, I'm busy, and a slob, I've had a butler my entire life and you hate that. Plus, we're not even really in love anymore-"

"I love you," She said, cutting him off. She didn't mean it.

"I just- it's not working out, okay Cass? Why don't we just move on. I'll pay for everything you need, rent, food, baby supplies-"

"Oh, so now I'm getting stuck with your stupid spawn?"

"I'd be too busy to take care of them properly."

"What about me? I've got a self defense class to teach and finish my degree."

It didn't matter how long she had tried to deny it. By the end of the month they agreed to divorice.

The divorice, and Cassie moving out and into her own two bedroom apartment on the other side of town, actually improved on things. They stopped fighting, and they started agreeing on set things. Tim's take the baby once a week out of every week, he'd pay for her rent and three hundred dollars worth of groceries. And he promised to be a little more flexible with babysitting when she was ready to start taking back on classes.

She never had any fantasies in the back of her mind about her and Tim getting back together. They had a good run and had loved all the memories of it, but it was done and she respected that.

Besides, she never realized how much the dating pool had to offer until after her and Tim broke up.

The baby is born two weeks early, and Tim does come for the birth as morale support and she thinks it's only fair he gets to have input in a name. It's a six pound three ounce baby boy they eventually decide to name Daniel Theodore "Danny" Sandsmark.

Tim had said it was fair Danny got her name since she'd be the primary caregiver.

So, yeah. The end. Or whatever.


End file.
